After impressing on his maiden visit to Australia about a year ago, the bald assassin, NYC’s Eric Cloutier, will headline Strange Signals on Saturday September 21 at an as-yet-unrevealed – more sensationalist writers would use the word ‘secret’ – location.

Mentored by the legendary Dan Bell, he started spinning records in the mid-’90s, and quickly established himself in club circles, earning a residency at legendary techno night The Bunker. Cloutierhas since cemented his status among the club cognoscenti, releasing his own material on fledgling label Studio R and DJing all across Europe as well as at Japan’s renowned Labyrinth Festival. A Deep Impressions source close to the party described Cloutier well: “When Cloutier unleashes, he’s very formidable. Not flashy, no gimmicks, just a solid five hours of sweaty grooves”. Anyone who saw him last year will know these are sweaty grooves of the highest order. With the promoters supplying Cloutier with the essentials – that is, “a bottle of whiskey and as long as he damn well wants to play” – this promises to be a gig you do not want to miss. Presale tickets are available online, and with capacity limited to 150 people, you do not want to delay in procuring one.

Esteemed French veteran DJPepperpot, the nom de plume of Gregory Lambert, will spin at theSpice Cellarthis Saturday August 31. Pepperpot is a specialist DJ who is a resident – and indeed curator – at Paris’ renowned clubspot, Rex Club. He’s been peppering clubbers since the early ’90s, and has played alongside many of the international house and techno A-list, honing his own distinct style in the process. Anyone unaware of the man ought to seek out some of hispodcastsonline, all of which showcase why the Frenchman is deserving of a full club in Sydney this weekend.

With his impending Sydney performance at Strange Fruit now only a month away, fans of Belgian producer and DJPeter Van Hoesenhave another reason to rejoice (or indulge in more muted celebration). Van Hoesen will release a recording of a live performance on Tresor Records in October entitled – wait for it –Life Performance.Recorded ata specially curated Time To Express label night at Tresor on July 19, the release showcases Van Hoesen’s increased penchant for live improvisation, and the sculpting of his sound in real time. “Making the tracks with the setup in mind as opposed to transposing tracks made in the studio into a live setting is much easier, and much more fun,” Van Hoesen said. “You can improvise with it freely – and for me that [improvisation] was most important – then decide, in that specific moment, about its tonality and its synthesis. I don’t work with samples often. If you use samples, there’s no way to really sculpt them – not just from a technical perspective, but also from an artist viewpoint. There’s a freshness and directness you get from being able to interact with the music and audience on a much deeper level than normal.” Van Hoesen headlines the next international installment of weekly bash Strange Fruit at theAbercrombie Hotelon Saturday September 28.

The countdown to December’sSubsonic Music Festivalis in full swing and organisers have announced the next in their offshoot Subclub series, which will occur on Saturday September 7 and be headlined by Germany’sChris Schwarzwälder, a reputable DJ (and chef!). A rising talent, Schwarzwälder has made his mark with remixes and co-productions, most prominently for/with Berlin club heroesNuandAcid Pauli, who played a memorable back-to-back set at last year’s Subsonic. Fresh from delivering a rollicking set at this year’s Fusion Festival in Berlin – which is available on Soundcloud as a consolation prize for everyone who was stranded anywhere but Berlin at the end of June – Schwarzwälder will soon be introducing Sydneysiders to his distinct sound. A lengthy lineup of support DJs has been assembled, featuring another DJ/chef (or at least a cafe all-rounder) inJordan Deckand Subsonic head honchoMarcotix.